David Amram was already a versatile composer and accomplished French horn player when he was 25. Both these qualities are evident in the first recordings he did as leader while living in Paris in 1955.
By the end of the year he had returned to the United States and hit New Yorks exciting jazz scene. Not only did he play his horn alongside some of the jazz greats, but he also revealed himself as a highly articulate pianist. He freely admitted that his playing was influenced by Thelonious Monk but, as is clear in these recordings, the inventiveness and originality of his own work is unmistakable. Despite his activities in the field of jazz, Amram would also become one of New Yorks most active and highly regarded theater composers.
Tracklist
Total time: 76:48 min.
01. Rue Mazarine (Amram) 3:00
02. I Married An Angel (Rodgers-Hart) 3:17
03. Hess Goes West (Amram) 3:16
04. Plays This Love With Me (Amram) 3:28
05. The Way You Look Tonight (Kern-Fields) 4:18
06. The Birds Of Montparnasse (Amram) 2:45
07. Occasion (Amram) 2:49
08. Bed Time Story (Amram) 2:50
09. Someday Morning Will Come (Amram-Karpe) 3:38
10. Lobo Nocho (Amram) 3:49
11. I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart (Ellington-Nemo-Redmond-Mills) 3:13
12. Darn That Dream (Van Heusen-De Lange) 3:40
13. City Talk (Amram) 2:57
14. Phipps Quipps (Phipps) 2:47
15. The Best Thing For You (Berlin) 3:04
16. Shenandoah (Arr. & Adapt. by David Amram) 3:45
17. Somewhere Along The Way (Gallop-Adams) 2:44
18. I Love You (Porter) 2:57
19. Las Muchachas Delicadas (Amram) 5:30
20. True Blue (Amram) 5:27
21. Harolds Way Out (Amram) 6:49
Album details
Personnel on tracks 1-8:
David Amram, French horn; Bobby Jaspar, tenor sax & flute; Maurice Vander, piano & harpsichord; Eddie de Haas, bass; Jacques David, drums.
Recorded in Paris, July 4 & 5 (#19-21), 1955
Personnel on tracks 9-18:
George Barrow, tenor sax; David Amram, piano & French horn; Arthur Phipps, bass; Al Harewood, drums.
Recorded in New York, January 16 (#9-10), 21 (#11-13) & 30 (#14-18), 1957
Personnel on tracks 19-21:
Harold Land, tenor sax; David Amram, piano; George Morrow, bass; Leon Petties, drums.
Recorded in New York City, 1961
This compilation produced for CD release by Jordi Pujol
